Healthy soil and sustainable growing

["TradingPostPaul" <tradingpost@riseup.net>]

Likewise. We're in a cooler semi-arid climate in NM high desert and
irrigate. I don't dismiss planting by the moon but we have tight planting
schedules and we have to plant on time no matter what the moon's doing. We
have to double crop to raise production for our investment in beds and
fencing, and can't afford to wait a couple weeks or more to plant or
transplant when the beds are already empty and the weather allows it now.
Some beds empty gradually as we sell and we have to plant more in advance
to have transplants ready to fill empty spots. The economics of home
growing are going to trump other considerations.

paul tradingpost@lobo.net

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 1/30/2008 at 1:06 PM Dieter Brand wrote:

>Bruce,
>   
>  I had been meaning to try some of these techniques. However, so far this

>  has failed because both the use of herbal brews and planting according
>to 
>  the calendar were originally designed for temperate climate zones, and
>so 
>  far I haven't come across any way of adapting them to the type of 
>  Mediterranean semi-arid climate I live in now.
>   
>  Stinging nettles, comfrey etc. grow naturally in temperate zones, but
>here 
>  it is very difficult to cultivate them even in the best of garden soils.
>Perhaps,
>  if I had more experience I could try and identify native plants that
>fulfil the
>  same functions. But, when it comes to planting according the calendar, 
>  the difficulties are even worse, because when we get two or three days
>of 
>  rain after 3 or 6 months of drought, I have got to get the seeds into
>the field 
>  no matter what the moon phases or the constellations are like.
>   
>  Dieter Brand
>  Portugal